Demonstrators in South Korea last week call for the release of Laura Ling and Euna Lee.

Maureen Miller
AC360° Writer

There are new threats from North Korea. For the first time, the communist regime says it would use nuclear weapons in a "merciless offensive", if provoked. And, there's word tonight that China, one of the North's few friends, would support tougher sanctions against Pyongyang for it nuclear tests and missile launches. North Korea has already said they will consider sanctions a declaration of war and answer with "extreme hard line measures."

The tough, dangerous talk comes one day after North Korea sentenced two American journalists to 12 years of hard labor. Laura Ling and Euna Lee were accused of trying to sneak into the country from neighboring China. Tonight, we take you to the border in question and talk with two people who know the region well. One is a filmmaker. The other spent four years on the border helping North Korean's escape.

Also tonight, a jailhouse chat. CNN's Ted Rowlands talks with the man accused of killing abortion provider Dr. George Tiller. Today Tiller's family said they are closing his Wichita, Kansas clinic for good. It was one of only of few clinics in the country that provided third-trimester abortions. The man charged with the doctor's murder, Scott Roeder, called the closing a victory. Don't miss Ted's exclusive interview.

And, hear from a survivor of the U.S. Airways Flight 1549. That's the jet that had to make an emergency landing in the Hudson River back in January. Amazingly, everyone on board survived and the pilot, Capt. Chesley Sullenberger was celebrated as a hero. The captain testified at today's NTSB hearing in Washington, along with Billy Campbell who was in seat 25-A. He was the last passenger out of the plane. He has a remarkable story. We'll share it with you tonight.

soundoff(27 Responses)

Terry, TX

What North Korea didn't get the memo of hope and change....they didn't receive the letter of complaint from the UN....no....Russia didn't sign the letter...how about NATO with their new green wildlife capture and release program. What to do....what to do....this is on Obama's watch....now N Korea wants to use nuclear weapons....well someone needs to go negotiate and be diplomatic and in your armpit carry a white flag. Obama, Biden, Holder and Rahm Emmanuel.....just needs to handle it....handle it...handle it.

June 10, 2009 at 6:41 am |

Greg C.

My prayers are with these two brave women and I hope they are released safely soon, and yes the threats to scare me even more now that I have a three year old son but something has to be done we cannot live our lives in fear. Obama confuses me and I am not sure if this is an issue he is going to be able finish without some sort of military force against North Korea.

June 10, 2009 at 5:47 am |

sam lewis

fighting a war based on religion is by far the most dangerous, and most violent war you could ever find yourself being apart of. in a war of nations you fight for dominance, power , and personal gain, but a war for ritiousness, our motives are above anything man can imagine. you fight the war of ritouesness because of what you truly believe in your heart and what you feel is good and just in the eyes of the almighty god and not man. in a mans war you are driven by guns, tanks, bombs. in a holy war you are driven by faith, religous belief, and the promise of everything new.

June 10, 2009 at 4:54 am |

J.V.Hodgson

Tillers accused killer does not seem to deny he did it and says he is not insane.
On that basis if the evidence proves him guilty by a jury of his peers, he shuld face the same sentence he imposed on Tiller.
Korea, well it is time to treat this Hitlerite like Hitler, while the stable world can, obliterate his nuclear plants, his missile launch sites and major military bases and communications and then see if he wants to negotiate? If we continue to pussy foot around the havoc nuclear or otherwise simply increases in potency and risk.
Relaxing the shipping controls as the UN proposes means he wins again and the threat level increases in scale and potential countries affected. As on commentator Knowledgeable in these matters has said his Guidance systems are probablty totally unreliable, and the triggering mechanisms.
Give him 24 hours to sign the NNPTreaty Or suffer the consequences.
He forgets it's a two way street when it comes to threats and thier effectiveness.
Regards,
Hodgson.

June 10, 2009 at 4:10 am |

george

HI Maureen
We talk about going in and taking out Irans nuclear potential. Why arent we talking about taking out the North Korean threat?

June 10, 2009 at 2:21 am |

Tom Williams

North Korea will implode if it does not explode, too act as the victim while being the aggressor as the country and its citizens suffocate on their self imposed isolation, something has to give.

June 10, 2009 at 12:54 am |

CRAIG WILLIAMS

USA needs to sterp in, for thses to ladies, they have rights too; they don't need to be in jail in another country

June 10, 2009 at 12:18 am |

MJ from Phoenix, AZ

I don't mean to sound cold about this but what exactly were the 2 American journalists doing on the border of China and North Korea? How do you accidently go into North Korea? I know its not something that I have ever done. They must have known what they were getting themselves into. I appreciate reporters trying to uncover what is happening,it is important to get the real news! However, these are 2 very closed countries that they knew would not react well to their being there. They chose to take a VERY high risk doing what they were doing. How/why would you do this if you were married and have a kid? What reaction would they expect? Eventhough, we don't agree with these societies, you cannot disrespect them and expect a different reaction.

June 10, 2009 at 12:04 am |

Jay K

I think Pres. Obama is sitting in a perfect position to act, put in Ethics on this little N. Korean dictator and shine. We need to get rid of nuclear weapons, not add more. Sooner or later, one of these lunatics is going to do something not pro survival. There are 12 dictators left on this planet, they need to be removed, if necessary, one by one......any way feasible.

June 9, 2009 at 11:50 pm |

bill reddick

I've analysed the other comments on this page regarding North Korea. Kim is just a little turd with built up shoes, like all the other dictators in history, he and his regime will fall.Hitler, Mussolini, Saddam, Amin etc the list is endless, but fall they did, and Kim is no different, he has the same mindset as all the rest, that he and his pals are going to impose ignorance and rule by fear.Even the Russians pulled back during the Cuban Missile crisis, as for Kim and friends, surely, they have heard of MAD...Mutually Assured Destruction..thats of course if they have the capability of throwing a missile further than Japan, which i doubt!The one thing in my mind about all this is the fate of the North Koreans themselves.Living in abject poverty under an almost unendurable Gestapo controlled existence!Still i suppose when sharia law is imposed globally, Kim might have second thoughts about what HE is doing! All those guys in the parliament, applauding and kissing Kim's ass, should start worrying now, as did the leaders of Nazi Germany, as soon as they knew the game was up.Sales of diapers should now be soaring in Pyongyang!

June 9, 2009 at 11:39 pm |

Keith from Dallas

I am a strong believer in peace but this will never end with N Korea.. World war II we were pushed into a war that we had to step up to the plate and show the world , the United States will be pushed around. When we dropped the A bomb on Japan it ended the war and made us more of a nation together. It’s not if N. Korea nukes us, but when. We need to step up again and put this country back in its place. We will save American lives and show the world the Us will not tolerate it. After the bomb was dropped, it stopped the war and saved millions of lives all over the world. Since then we have played the political game and showed the world we are getting weaker. Look at the Vietnam War or all the Americans that have died for Middle East peace. Get wiser Americans its time for us to show them we are back in the game. Maybe the Talban would think twice about things after we dropped on small nuke on Kim’s house!

June 9, 2009 at 11:30 pm |

Cory H - DSM, IA

There are 46,540 square miles in North Korea.... Lets say that we dont use a nuclear weapon for "greenpeace sake". The largest non-nuclear weapon is the MOAB (Mother of all Bombs) a 21,600-pound bomb; with an average destruction area of 900-1000 sq ft. that means we would need 1,298,018,304 MOABs for complete destruction..... Thats a lot of sorties...

June 9, 2009 at 11:18 pm |

Mary Miura

I read in National Geographic about the escape from North Korea and
how difficult it was. What stood out in the article was the totally unmarked
boarders of North Korea. It's not as if there is a fence. It is just open
fields and lookouts. I fear it is a trap for people who are not sure of where they are. If the US pushes too hard South Korea and Japan would
be North Korea" targets. It is a bad situation. We need to help by pushing against the government.

June 9, 2009 at 11:16 pm |

Ann-Virginia

N.Korea is just posturing,trying to see how far they can push the Obama administration.

June 9, 2009 at 11:14 pm |

Dale

No one in the world will do anything until North Korea drops a nuke on someone and Bush will get the blame.

June 9, 2009 at 11:13 pm |

BB Scott

The UN has become a big joke!

June 9, 2009 at 10:49 pm |

John

Re: Air France 447, pitot tubes & conficting air speed indications. I have not seen anywhere a reference to possibility that the weather, e.g. the storm front, could have been responsible for the conflicting air speed indications. The pitot tubes use a differential between the air pressure in the static tube and the ram air tube to determine the air speed. However, if the static tube sees a varying change in the static tube as might be possible in a storm the air speed reading could change as a result. Just a thought. Regards.

June 9, 2009 at 10:39 pm |

Tambi

But can N. Korea reach us with their weapons? And do they really have the nuclear power that they claim? I think they should be pushed first by the sanctions and then further if necessary. This is the perfect time to do it. We need to take advantage of China and the U.S. being on the same page for once!!!

June 9, 2009 at 10:37 pm |

onyx

Even though things are getting heated up with the North Korean regime's rhetoric, they know they can easily be obliterated by China. As strange as this may sound, as an opening to dialogue with North Korea to strike at their senses, I think Al Gore (or maybe the husbands of Laura and Euna) should offer to take the place of the 2 journalists. Lets see how they'll react to that. At the least, I think it will put them on the spot of having to respond to this with a little more perspective and compassion which will allow the US or China to negotiate on a better tone. They want respect to their country's law and somehow we have to show them that we do. My 2 kibble worth.

June 9, 2009 at 10:36 pm |

Ruthie Rader

North Korea needs an attitude adjustment. How long will we wait before those monsters do something horrible? Fate is our Country's choice to make.

June 9, 2009 at 10:26 pm |

Lynna

I am not sure why North Korea so excited to go to war? Why such bitter lately or perhaps she has secretly planned ready to attack the world to conquer something? Conquere what? Notice that North Korea only have few friends and even one of her few friends like China would turn against her. Is she alright? Does North Korea needs mental help like other terrorists or criminals? Or the government really needs a lesson? Why is she so confident that she can win a war or any war? Please release the two American journalists and move on with your illogical government and continue to do with whatever you want to do to make you happy. Keep your ego with you. We don't want any war.

June 9, 2009 at 10:20 pm |

nickii

Hi Anderson. I really love your show and think you are an awesome reporter/host. Appreciate that you show respect for your guests, no matter what their political perspective. There is too much shouting going on in programs that should instead aim to educate us about complex issues. Having said that, I did want to express my concern about the publicity that is being given to Scott Roeder. He does not deserve to have his views broadcast on CNN, and through that publicity, given a kind of legitimacy. Pro-life views deserve to be heard. But not the views of a murdering terrorist. I only hope that people who support a pro-life position but believe themselves to be governed by the rule of law will have the courage to call out those extremists who boast about committing acts of vandalism and violence.

June 9, 2009 at 10:14 pm |

Jon

The crazy North Korean dictator has seized upon and seeks to capitalize on the Obama administration's weak-kneed approach to foreign policy...what a shocker.

Looking forward to the story Billy Campbell has to tell from that aircraft. Last passenger on board – was he nervous about not getting out or did he figure he would be ok and get out in time?

North Korea is getting so worrisome. I wish Obama would start talks with them. If all they want is recognition as a country within the global community what harm is there in giving it to them? We don't approve of all our allies' actions or words but as long as no one flings a bomb at each other isn't it better to be able to talk so one can try to prevent any massively bad actions. I remember the last one that made threats to the US – Saddam – I sure don't want a repeat of that.

June 9, 2009 at 10:00 pm |

Sandra Robertson, GA

Good evening Maureen. North Korea's actions and words are irrational and frightening. I pray they will release Laura Ling and Euna Lee, two young journalists who need to be with their families; they have suffered enough.

June 9, 2009 at 9:50 pm |

Lou Bayou

Time to play ball! The little tyrunt needs a can of whoop-azz opened up on him!